Foot operated boat propulsion means



Oct. 10, 1950 gs, GULLEY v 2,525,349

FOOT OPERATED BOAT PROPULSION MEANS File d June 13, 1947 v 2 SheetsShe et 1 Inventor Newton 3. Gul ley I III/[:1 Ma W E Oct. 10, 1950 N. s. GULLEY FOOT OPERATED BOAT PROPULSION MEANS 2 Sheets-Sheet 2' Filed June 13, 1947 I11 1 211 tor Ne Mon 8. Gu/ley Patented Oct. 10, 1950 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE- FOOT OPERATED BOAT PROPULSION MEANS Newton s. Gulley, Nashville, N. o. I

Application June 13, 1947, Serial No. 754,391 Y K a fishing rod, gun, or for other purposes, while at the same time the boat is being moved through the water.

A further object of the invention is to provide oscillating paddles mounted at each side of the boat together with foot pedals operatively connected to the paddles for moving the same forwardly and backwardly in a motion to propel the boat.

Another object of the invention is to provide a foldable blade for the paddle, the blades being maintained in a'rigid positionduring the power or propelling stroke thereof and foldable during an opposite stroke of the paddle to eliminate resistance to the water. V

Another object of the invention is to provide an apparatus of this character which may be easily and quickly mounted in position in a boat without necessitating any changes or alterations in th construction thereof and which, at the same time, is efficient and reliable in operation; relatively inexpensive to manufacture and other wise well adapted for the purposes for which the same is intended.

Other objects and advantages reside in the details of construction and operation as more fully hereinafter described and claimed, reference being had to the accompanying drawings forming part hereof, wherein like numerals refer to like parts throughout, and in which:

Figure 1 is a top plan view;

Figure 2 is a transverse sectional view taken on a line 22 of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a longitudinal sectional view taken on a line 33 of Figure 2;

Figure 4 is an enlarged perspective view of one of the paddles; and

Figure 5 is a similar view of one of the clamps for the paddle.

Referring now to the drawings in detail wherein, for the purpose of illustration, I have disclosed a preferred embodiment of the invention, the numerals 5 and 6 designate a pair of tubular posts or standards each having a base or foot I for resting on the bottom of a boat 8 adjacent one side thereof.

A vertical rod 9 has its lower end slidably received in each of the standards and is secured in vertically adjusted position therein by a set screw or the like II]. To the upper end of each 3 Claims. (01. 115 -66) r theupperend of the crank arm 2! and is atrod '9 is welded or otherwise suitably secured a horizontal tube II which is welded or otherwise fixedly secured adjacent one'end to a clamp I? which is clamped to the gunwale or upper edge [3 of the boat by a bolt and wing nut M.

The two tubes ll supported at the upper ends of the standards 5 and 6 project inwardly of the boat from the respective clamps l2 and the inner ends of the tubes I I are rigidly connected to each other by means of a rod 15 projecting into the adjacent ends of the tubes and secured in adjusted position by set screws IS, the tubes ll being adjusted relative to each other in accordance with the width of the'boat.

A shaft l'lis rotatably supported in each tube I l and projects outwardly at'the outer end there-' I of, the outer endof the shaft being formed with a downwardly extending arm l8." v

The lower end of the arm [8 is telescopicall received in a tubular paddle handle l9 and is secured in adjusted position therein by a set structed as near as possible to resemble a ducks foot. v V

The blade 22 is of substantially reticulated form and includesxa. plurality of jointed fingers :24 diverging toward their lower ends from each other, the sections of the fingers bein pivotally connected to each other by a conventional hinge structure 25 which holds the fingersrigid when the blade is moved in one direction through the water and permits afolding action of the fingers when the blades are moved in a reverse direction through the water. A flexible web 26 of rubber or the like extends between the adjacent fingers and is connected at its edges thereto.

The shaft I1 is provided at its inner end with a crank arm 21 which extends upwardly and forwardly through a circumferential slot 28 in the tube II.

A coil spring 29 surrounds the tube II with one end 30 of the spring attached to the crank arm 2'! and the other end of the spring attached to a set screw 3! carried by the tube II.

A rope or cable 32 is attached at one end to tached at its lower end to the free edge of a foot pedal 33 which is supported in an upwardlyand forwardly inclined position in the boat and pivoted at its lower end on a horizontal arm 34 projecting laterally from one of the posts. The upper lower surface of the foot pedal 33 is formed 3 with a heel seat 35 to support a foot in position on the foot pedal.

In the operation of the device the posts 5 and 6 are braced against the bottom 8 of the boat by the clamp l2 which is secured to the gunwale I3 and the paddle arms l8 extend downwardly at each side of the boat from the respective tubes I I at the upper ends of the posts.

The foot pedals 13 are positioned to extend forwardly in an upwardly inclined position so that a person seated in the boat may place his feet on the foot pedals carried by the respective posts.

A downward pressure exerted on the foot pedals will bring the crank arms 21 downwardly whereby to rotate the shaft l1 and oscillate the paddle arms H3 at the outer ends of the shaft. The paddles I9 carried at the lower ends of the paddle arms 18 may be oscillated independently or in unison according to the wishes of the operator.

The blades 22 are positioned at the rear side of the flat headZl at the lower end of the paddle and the fingers '24 of the .blades are likewise arranged to be held in a rigid position :by. a rearward stroke of the paddle when. the foot 'pedal 33 isv blades offer no resistance to the water during.

their return stroke.

From the foregoing, it .Willlzbe apparent. that the boat may be propelled. at .a slow. speed and the hands of the operator are free for handling.

a fishing rod or -for other purposes.

In view of the foregoing description takenrin.

conjunction with the accompanying drawings, it is believed. that a clear understanding of the.con-. struction, operation and .advantagesof the device will be vquiteapparent to those skilledin this art. A more detailed description is accordingly deemed.

unnecessary.-

It is to be understood, howeirer, that even.

though I have herein shown and described a preferred embodiment of my inventionthat the same is susceptible to certain changes fully comprehended by the spirit of the invention as herein described and within the scope of the appended claims.

Having described the invention, what is claimed as new is:

1. A boat propulsion device comprising a trans verse shaft housing, attaching means holding the housing rigid to a side of a boat, a shaft journaled in the housing, a paddle connected to the outer end of the shaft for oscillating movement, a crank arm at the inner end of the shaft, an upright support for the inner end of the housing rising from the bottom of the boat, and a foot pedal pivoted to the support and connected to said crank arm for operating the shaft.

2. A boat propulsion device comprising a transverse shaft housing, attaching means holding the housing rigid toa side of a boat, a shaft journaled in the housing, apaddle conn'ectedto' the outer fingers connected to each other at one end and hinged to the rear side of said flat end of the shank to fold by water pressure during a forward stroke of the paddle, and a flexible web between said fingers.

v NEWTON s. GULLEY.

vmirelir lvofris' CITED The following references are of record in the file v 'of this patent:

UNITED STATES PA'IENV'IS v Date Number Name 65517.42 Sheen Aug. 14, 1900- l,737,899 Taylor; Dec. 3, 1929 1,914,901 Thompson June 20 1933 2,292,609

'Buehler Aug. 11, 1 942 

